Ocean rafts for mining hydrogen

ABSTRACT

These Ocean rafts for mining hydrogen consist of a variety of structurally connected modules that form seaworthy powered maneuverable floating ocean platforms for an on-board hydrogen mining and storage facility, as well as an oxygen, distillation, and mineral recovery operation. These operations shall be powered by synergistic clean energy systems consisting of: a photogalvanic solar array; wind turbines; perimeter wave action devices; and mechanisms that derive electrical energy from the variable tension on the anchor lines. There may also be a small on-board nuclear reactor to generate continuous additional electricity. Underwater propellers powered by fuelcells, capable of a full 360 degree rotation and located on the corners of the platform, will enable rotation and navigation of the entire assembly. Hydrogen, oxygen, distilled water, and ocean minerals shall be routinely unloaded near a storage facility, before returning to sea for a new cycle of mining; or routinely picked up by specialized ocean tankers.

These Ocean rafts for mining hydrogen consist of a variety of types of modules that are structurally connected to form massive floating seaworthy platforms that are maneuverable by means of multiple fuelcell powered engines capable of a complete 360 degree rotation. These assemblies shall include an on-board hydrogen production facility which will be designed to extract hydrogen and oxygen directly from the sea by means of electrolysis. It may also produce distilled water by recycling a portion of the entropic heat that is created by the electrolysis and other on-board processes. Sea salt, minerals, and elements will also be reclaimed from this operation.

This ocean mining system shall obtain all of it's electrical energy from hydrogen derived from a number of on-board synergistic clean energy production systems. These systems shall include, but are not necessarily limited to the following: 1) Vertical axis or conventional wind turbines secured into female cylindrical receptors which shall be an integral part of the modules. 2) A very large photogalvanic solar array mounted directly on top of the steel roof of the enclosed portion of the structure. The entire solar array shall maintain the maximum efficiency of this system by slowly rotating the raft assembly, and therefore the array, by means of the fuelcell powered engines throughout the day as the sun moves across the sky. All operational systems shall be controlled by an on-board computer program. 3) Perimeter wave action and surge devices that consist of newly designed, vertically mounted fins that pivot on a vertical axis next to the exterior skin of the modules, also designed with flotation, making them capable of moving up and down as the waves rise and fall. These devices shall be mechanically or hydraulically designed to drive integral electrical generators on both the vertical and the horizontal motions of the waves. They shall be mounted on all sides of the raft assembly at all locations deemed appropriate. 4) Sea anchor lines (chains) may include another electrical energy producing device that attaches to the anchor chain and the hull of the raft, taking up the entire tensile load between the two points of connection. This device would remain above the water line and be activated by the variation in tension in the anchor chain due to the motion of the sea currents, winds and waves. 5) Another option shall include a small scale on-board nuclear reactor. This will provide a continuous substantial power supply to augment all of the other synergistic energy systems.

All of the power produced will be used for the mining of hydrogen through electrolysis, which will be stored on-board in either pressurized or insulated cryogenic tanks located inside the hull of the raft assembly. The oxygen and distilled water will also be located in tanks within the hull assembly. Sea salt, minerals, and elements shall be returned to shore for processing and refinement. The storage tanks shall be constructed along with the raft, and permanently placed within the modular components and shall be designed to last the entire lifetime of the raft assembly. The combined electrical output of all systems at any given point in time will vary depending upon sunlight conditions, the time of day as well as sea and wind conditions; so therefore, the amount of hydrogen and oxygen generated will also fluctuate throughout the day.

All systems shall operate on fuelcell technology using only a small portion of the hydrogen which is being continuously produced. Fuelcells shall provide power to the engines and all operating systems to include lighting, hydraulics, motors, pumping to tanks, and all other support systems. The assembly mobility shall allow the movement to and from a near off-shore unloading facility, albeit at a very slow rate of speed and with tugboats to assist as needed for final positioning for unloading. All hydrogen, oxygen, and distilled water will be pumped from the on-board tanks to the on-shore storage facilities. The raft assembly would then be resupplied as required before returning to sea to begin it's next mining cycle. In some installations, the hydrogen and oxygen, produced under pressure, shall be piped directly undersea to a shore distribution facility. Hydrogen may also be periodically picked up by a specialized freighter, or pumped into adjacent large floating cylinders to be towed ashore by tugboats.

The raft assemblies shall include all required safety and navigational equipment for off-shore ships to include lifeboats for all the crew. A rescue heliport may be included directly on top of the pilot house control room. This option may require that one of the wind turbines be eliminated to provide adequate clearance space for the heliport.

The propeller drive assemblies capable of a full 360 degree rotation on all corners of the ship shall be housed within cylindrical enclosures. They may also be equipped with a directional rudder assembly for finer control of movement.

Although the attached drawings indicate that the modules are equilateral triangles in plan view, they may also be designed as isosceles triangles, ellipses, or rhombuses (with a sharper acute angle at the pilot house location); if there is an apparent advantage in construction, maneuverability, control, or a more efficient layout of systems. The dimensions of the raft assemblies may also change based upon structural, construction, and on-board production system output targets.

The modules shall be constructed at shipyards and made of corrosive resistant or stainless steel for longevity. Alternatively, the steel may be a type commonly used for shipbuilding with protective coverings and an electrical grounding system to minimize corrosive action over time. All final module structural connections shall be made in harbor before beginning operations. When the useful lifetime of the steel modules comes to an end after many years of service, they shall be cut apart and recycled to be made into newly refined steel at a hydrogen fueled steel mill. This new technology will produce no carbon dioxide!

For simplicity and safety, there shall be no direct access between modules below the waterline, but two exits to the deck from each module may be required for safety reasons, although one may be by a ship's ladder and hatch. All modules will be accessible from the upper deck by means of steel stairways located inside the enclosed manufacturing portion above deck. Exterior walls and roof over the enclosed manufacturing portion shall be steel designed to withstand heavy seas.

There shall be a rainwater collection system that stores the water on the deck level for periodic wash down maintenance of the solar panels, decks, and equipment by means of a separate pressurized system.

The electrolysis mining equipment shall be located at the middle of the central module on the top deck. The anode(s) and cathode(s) shall be lowered into the sea through a cylindrical opening which is built into the central module. It will be advantageous to lower these (along with their integral surrounding gas containment vessels) to a deep depth into the sea, which will pressurize the mined hydrogen and oxygen gasses, thereby forcing them up through pressure resistant lines to the on-board surface collection and processing equipment before being stored in pressurized tanks located within the hull of the assembly.

In large tidal zones, the raft assembly may be secured by lines attached to the top and bottom of permanent concrete pylons that attach to the corners of the raft (where the anchors are located) in order to take advantage of gravitational kinetic energy and buoyant kinetic energy to drive specialized on-board electrical generators as the tides rise and fall.

The successful development and refinement of this invention should contribute to solving our Earth's pollution problems. I sincerely hope this open ocean system of hydrogen mining will further help all humanity to move away from our dependence on fossil fuels that is destructive to our planet and all life on Earth. We need to develop a hydrogen/electricity based economy as soon as possible. Hydrogen and electricity are interchangeable in so much as they may be converted back and forth. Hydrogen burns clean and produces water only. This system uses renewable solar, wind, and wave action devices to continuously mine hydrogen from the sea. When hydrogen is used to produce energy, either through combustion or by means of a fuelcell, the resulting pure water which is produced, goes directly back into the environment with no negative effects on the Earth.

Historical context: Throughout history, man has been burning dead plants and animals for fuel; and using wind, water, and muscle for power. Initially, man's fuel sources were mostly limited to burning wood, dung, and some coal, until petroleum was discovered in Pennsylvania, and later refined into gasoline and eventually many other petrochemical products. Today, with a world population of over seven billion people, and diminishing oil and coal reserves; our carbon dioxide has risen to 360 parts per million (up from 270 parts per million at the beginning of the industrial revolution) and is projected to reach 450 parts per million by 2020. Ice core samples from both the arctic and antarctic confirm that 360 parts per million of carbon dioxide has never been reached before in the last 600,000 years. There is little question in my mind that we are headed for a global catastrophe if we don't cut the industrial, commercial, and transportation related production of carbon dioxide. Hydrogen paired with electricity is a clean energy solution that we can move to now! Humanity needs to do this before it's too late.

Some of the distinct advantages of developing and using this concept of Ocean rafts for mining hydrogen are:

1) It will have the capability to provide a continuous supply of hydrogen for worldwide use, as raft assemblies rotate in and out of supply depots located at ports around the Earth; or as specialized hydrogen tankers periodically service these many future ocean raft installations in the open ocean around the Earth.

2) These ocean rafts can be positioned in many locations on the seas of the Earth. It will be more advantageous to perform the electrolysis at a deep depth under the sea, because this will produce hydrogen and oxygen under much greater pressure within the containment vessels surrounding the anode(s) and cathode(s). Therefore, the pressurized gasses will move up through pressurized lines and into the storage tanks, thus saving considerable additional energy that would have been needed to be expended to compress the gasses at sea level pressure. In some installations where deep sea trenches exist near shore, the pressurized hydrogen and oxygen may be directly piped undersea to a nearby shore distribution facility. (In this former example, a permanent deep underwater installation with electrical power from shore could eliminate the need for an Ocean raft for mining hydrogen at that site). Another completely different method of delivery could be by filling large cylindrical, independently floating, pressurized tanks that could be towed to and from the hydrogen production sites by specialized tugboats.

3) In addition to the obvious advantages of developing a worldwide hydrogen based, clean energy system, for the future; the development, refinement, construction, maintenance, infrastructure, employment opportunities, and new product development will have a huge positive effect on worldwide economies well into the future. It is my hope that these design concepts will have a profoundly positive effect on America as the leader in the new inventions, development, construction, maintenance, and implementation of this concept.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1) Different types of modular plans for the hulls of the raft assemblies.

-   -   1) Modular component assembly based upon equilateral triangles.     -   2) Modular component assembly based upon isosceles triangles.     -   3) Modular components based upon rhombuses or parallelograms.     -   4) Modular component assembly based upon circles or ellipses.     -   5) Cylindrical opening from the deck through the bottom of the         hull.     -   6) Cylindrical engine sleeve penetration locations.     -   7) Above deck exterior walls shown dotted.

FIG. 2) Plan of equilateral triangle type modular assembly at the hull level.

-   -   1) Cylindrical opening from the deck through the bottom of the         hull.     -   2) Distilled water storage tanks.     -   3) Pressurized hydrogen and oxygen storage tanks.     -   4) Metal stairways from the deck to the bottom of the hull. (4)     -   5) Fuelcell powered 360 degree rotation engine. (3)     -   6) Sea anchor chain rode compartment storage.     -   7) Full height female steel sleeve to receive wind turbine         supports.     -   8) Nuclear reactor. (optional)

FIG. 3) Plan of equilateral triangle type modular assembly at the deck level.

-   -   1) Cylindrical opening from the deck through the bottom of the         hull.     -   2) Electrolysis power winch assemblies.     -   3) Rain water storage tank below winch assemblies.     -   4) Pressurized hydrogen and oxygen storage tanks.     -   5) Metal stairways from the deck to the bottom of the hull. (4)     -   6) Fuelcell powered 360 degree rotation engine. (3)     -   7) Wind turbine supports.     -   8) Wave action devices.     -   9) Anchor and chain rode.     -   10) Crew living quarters, galley, and storage areas.

FIG. 4) Plan of equilateral triangle type modular assembly from top.

-   -   1) Photogalvanic solar array.     -   2) Wind turbines.     -   3) Wave action devices.     -   4) Anchor and chain rode.     -   5) Anchor line tensile device or lines to permanent pylons.     -   6) Pilot house (optional heliport above).

FIG. 5) Elevation A and Section B.

FIG. 6) Aerial Perspective 

1. This invention is a system composed of structurally connected modules to form a variety of very large powered maneuverable ocean rafts that are designed to mine hydrogen from the ocean by means of electrolysis, along with oxygen, distilled water, and recovered minerals and salt, which are then stored on board until they are off-loaded; with all electrical energy being produced by the combined on-board synergistic clean energy systems consisting of: wind turbines, large solar arrays, perimeter wave action devices, sea anchor chain rode electrical generators, and lines dynamically attached to a generator and to the top and bottom of permanent concrete pylons in tidal areas; with the additional option of adding a small scale nuclear reactor for another substantial and consistent source of electrical power.
 2. Certain unique on-shore hydrogen mining electrolysis installations which are located near deep ocean trenches, may be permanently constructed on the sea bed with hydrogen and oxygen supply lines to shore, coupled with a return electrical supply line from shore, without the need for an Ocean raft for mining hydrogen. 